Elder Care

Some of the things that make elderly people become isolated is: lose a spouse, give up driver's license, lose/give up a job.  Middle school children can be a great service to these people.  How? Well, the young student can teach the older person how to use a computer to make new connections with the outside world.  Plus, the young person gives an elderly person a chance to act out some grand parenting, and thus be of service too.  Especially a church school like the one across the street from me in Boulder, the community can find ways to transport senior citizens to school events to which their computer tutor invites them, such as graduation from one grade to the next in school.  The middle schooler might have grandparents who live far away and are seen only periodically.  Now the youth gets to have an elderly buddy.  Everyone benefits in the local community from this service. STEM could come to mean Service Toward Emotional Maturity, instead of simply Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.